This coverage represents year 2013 MODIS fire detections for the geographic area covering the continental United States including a 50km buffer around the periphery. The detections are obtained using both TERRA MODIS and AQUA MODIS data are collected and processed as a cooperative effort between the USDA Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Center, NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center and the University of Maryland.

Purpose:

These fire detection data are collected for the USDA Forest Service MODIS Active Fire Mapping Program (http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us). These data are intended to provide a synoptic view of active fires for the past and present over the specified time period. These data are collected at a spatial resolution of 1 kilometer and therefore are only intended for geographic display and analysis at the national and regional levels. No responsibility is assumed by the USDA Forest Service in the use of these data.

Time_Period_of_Content:

Time_Period_Information:

Range_of_Dates/Times:

Beginning_Date: 20130101

Ending_Date: 20140101

Currentness_Reference: publication date

Status:

Progress: In work

Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: Daily

Spatial_Domain:

Bounding_Coordinates:

West_Bounding_Coordinate: -124.955

East_Bounding_Coordinate: -67.409

North_Bounding_Coordinate: 49.45500000094

South_Bounding_Coordinate: 25.16300000074

Keywords:

Theme:

Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Theme_Keyword: Fire

Theme_Keyword: Detection

Theme_Keyword: Wildfire

Theme_Keyword: MODIS

Theme_Keyword: Satellite

Theme_Keyword: Rapid Response

Theme_Keyword: TERRA

Theme_Keyword: AQUA

Place:

Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Place_Keyword: CONUS

Stratum:

Stratum_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Stratum_Keyword: Fire

Temporal:

Temporal_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Temporal_Keyword: None

Access_Constraints: None.

Use_Constraints:

These data are updated daily throughout the year, therefore it is recommended that users reacquire the data from the USDA Forest Service as necessary. The dataset is current through the Julian date and time stamp specified. For example, modis_fire_2013_101.e00.gz means that the data set is current through day 101 of the year 2013 (April 11, 2013).
Acknowledgement of the USDA Forest Service Remote Sensing Applications Center would be appreciated in products derived from these data.

Point attributes are derived from the MODLand Rapid Response algorithm and are subject to caveats and known problems documented in the MOD14 Fire Products Users Guide (<http://modis-fire.umd.edu/>)

Logical_Consistency_Report:

TERRA and AQUA MODIS provide complete coverage of the mid to higher latitudes four times daily. TERRA MODIS acquires data twice daily crossing the equator on an ascending node at 10:30 AM (local time) and also on a descending node at 10:30 PM. AQUA MODIS also acquires data twice daily crossing the equator on an ascending node at 1:30 PM (local time) and also on a descending node at 1:30 AM. MODIS data are acquired for the majority of the United States and southern Canada in near real time at the USDA Forest Service Remote Sensing Application Center (RSAC) in Salt Lake City. MODIS data for the eastern United States, Alaska, Hawaii and the rest of Canada are acquired near real-time from other selected MODIS ground stations and the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) MODIS Rapid Response System. MODIS data are processed within minutes of acquisition at RSAC, other MODIS ground stations and GSFC to extract active fire locations.

Completeness_Report:

The fire detections are discerned using the 1 kilometer thermal bands of MODIS. Fire locations are extracted from daily MODIS data by the MODLand Rapid Response System using the algorithm described by the MOD14 Users Guide (<http://modis-fire.umd.edu/>). Detections are provided as the centroids of the 1 kilometer pixels and compiled into daily Arc/INFO point coverages. Identification of a MODIS pixel as "fire" does not necessarily mean that the entire area represented by the pixel is on fire. The identification of a fire can be the result of a hot fire in a relatively small area or a cooler fire over a larger area. At this time, there is no way to discriminate between these two possibilities.

Fires as small as 100 square meters burning at a temperature of 1500 degrees Farenheit may be detected by MODIS. However, cloud cover above the fire, or, the position of the fire on the terrain relative to the location of the MODIS sensor may preclude the ability for detection.

Positional_Accuracy:

Horizontal_Positional_Accuracy:

Horizontal_Positional_Accuracy_Report:

Fire detection points represent the centroid of the 1 kilometer cell for a fire detection. Points are accurate to +/- 50 meters.

Although these data have been used by the USDA Forest Service, the USDA Forest Service shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained herein. These data are not legal documents and are not intended to be used as such. The information contained in these data is dynamic and is updated daily throughout the current year.

It is the responsibility of the data user to use the data appropriately and consistent within the limitations of geospatial data in general and these data in particular. Using the data for other than their intended purpose may yield inaccurate or misleading results. The USDA Forest Service gives no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of these data. It is strongly recommended that these data are directly acquired from the USDA Forest Service server and not indirectly through other sources which may have changed the data in some way. Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the USDA Forest Service, no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the utility of the data on another system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This disclaimer applies both to individual use of the data and aggregate use with other data.

The USDA Forest Service reserves the right to correct, update or modify this data and related materials without notification.